Clobiotics, Shanghai-based startup chooses Greater Seattle

Clobiotics, Shanghai-based startup chooses Greater Seattle

Clobotics (cloud + robotics), a Shanghai-based startup, recently announced plans to expand its Redmond-based R&D office, according to GeekWire. The move illustrates the importance of Greater Seattle and Washington State expertise in aerospace, engineering, cloud computing and more; areas that firms such as Clobiotics draw upon for the development of drones and unmanned aerial systems (UAS).

The company reportedly raised $5 million in seed funding and has 35 employees, including five at the Redmond R&D office.

Drone and UAS R&D in Greater Seattle and Washington State are attracting international attention. According to GeekWire, University of Washington drone spinout WiBotic recently raised $2.5 million in new funding, led by China-based Tsing Capital. Chinese drone company DJI opened a store in Factoria late last year. The UW received the second highest level of federal R&D funding of all US public universities in 2015, according to the National Institute of Science.

Amazon is also experimenting with drone deliveries and earlier this year Microsoft invested in a startup focused on drone technologies. According to Inc., the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) sector is expected to create 100,000 jobs in the US over the next 10 years. Expect Greater Seattle and Washington state to play a leading role.